As a semi-pro real estate ho, I attest that what you say is true in all regions that i observe, especially in new construction. If you want to sell, no indivuality is needed or wanted. If I'm looking for something to flip, I think about that neutral look a lot, because it seems to be what people want. But in my own home, I am bucking every trend. Except quartz. Did just put quartz in our master bath -- but it's sparkly blue! All traditional paneled cabs. Plain bright-white floor. Traditional tiled shower with chair rail. I could never sell it to the masses. No one would look twice.

It should be the other way around actually. The more you're exposed to different things-the more you get interested in the subject, and appreciate the diversity that undoubtedly will reveal itself to you

Example-until recently, I've never been to Latin America. Never knew much too. Then one time we thought where to take our "urban" kids that got scared of every bee and spider-and took them to the jungles in Costa Rica, considered the most zoologically diverse place on Earth..a lounge far way from everything, no internet, nada..limited electricity usage..the zoological diversity is all around you(and some of it you'd rather pass on seeing lol). Ok so you get interested. Went to Nicaragua next time-learnt a lot about the country's history, talked to people who live there..you get even more interested. Watched "Narcos"-you learn about Colombia a bit..then you find yourself fascinated with the language, right? So you start watching primitive shows to try and learn language because it brings you joy when you can recognize words and sentences..it starts from an exposure to something and it brings you wanting to know more.

So the more I read the more kitchens I see..you wouldn't know from my Pinterest board on kitchens which one I like the best..they're all very different. I like them being different. I like them feeling alive..being like all sorts of different people with different character and all.

Especially as we didn't know anything about trends when I grew up..and then we moved to a different country..and you go through the whole shebang of emigration, and you live wherever and you have other things consuming you..I always liked my places to feel cozy but the kitchen was what was there.

Then at last we buy our first place I install my first kitchen ever-and we leave to yet another country(here). Again, you're busy with other stuff. The kitchen is what your apartment building put in. And it's fine too btw. You have 2 bathrooms and you're like "wow! I never saw apartments with 2 bathrooms yet!"

Then you get back, and you have start all over..so you buy this place that's bigger since your family grows and you're so happy and you even find out there are magazines on design?

But then the company sends you back here. So again apartments, and looking for a job and ..you've no idea, not the slightest one, how it's supposed to be or something. Every kitchen you see in other people's houses looks good to you.

Actually I started being interested in the topic (design not specifically kitchens) because we had this amazing workshop where we learned a bit how surroundings (a house or a room) influence our behaviour. So I started noticing more and more of it and it started being interesting to me. And then I read more and more and more..and then maybe a couple years ago I found out there are actually blogs? Lol

Soo..I don't know..you get exposed to something-yes, there's a big possibility you might actually start liking it and appreciating it, even if not necessarily choosing it.

I don't know why it looks like it works the other way around..maybe because the exposure is limited, for most people who don't find themselves as interested in the topic? I'm interested so I dig more and more thus I find lots of variety. I also traveled a lot, whether I wanted it or so it happened..so I know that's not one size fits all kitchen and not one size fits all home..and that's what makes it fascinating actually.

If you're interested but only for the time being(say you remodel right now or buy a home right now), and you look around you and that's what you see-more chance you also find it easily in the store (without having to make 4-hour-in-a-car trips to the tile shop), and it might be cheaper because scarce things are generally more expensive.

There's a reason to everything. No, as somebody who spent years in Mediterranean-you don't have granite:) Granite is not quarried there. Limestone and marble are quarried there, so that's what you've got.

There's a reason I like limestone-it reminds me of home. Same reason is I love tiles.

There's a reason I less prefer slate and granite. I can appreciate them when beautiful. But I will like Quartzite more probably because it doesn't reminds me of mausoleums and such.

There's a reason some kitchens work in places X and others, work in places Y. Because it's natural. The moment it's fake to your location, your house, and personally you-then when it's a problem.

I don't like Kate Middleton's style at all:) Oh she dresses tastefully of course and she's a princess

but I'm not a princess and I'd look funny as hell if I'd try to emulate her style

I like very comfy (so I can forget what I wear), elegant to some degree, and a bit of a quirk. I'd rather look at Helena Bonham Carter..more interesting.

Goodness I just can't make these posts short and readable can I?

But that's because you pick interesting subjects beachem:)

Most people don't have any style. Most people are still happy with brown 12" tile from Home Depot and granite counters that look like vomit. People are now going with a countertop material that looks different from granite that's been overused for too long, and they don't seem to care that they aren't setting themselves apart because they're picking out the same materials everyone else is choosing. They don't have any personal sense of style and they don't really have any taste, they also don't really care because what they really want is what everyone else has.

I have always preferred white cabinets and went with a locally quarried blue-grey marble countertop. I went with unlacquered brass hardware because it's true to our home, which is a Colonial farmhouse that's already full of brass. I have a pretty on trend looking kitchen, but it's what I would have picked out back when everyone was going with espresso cabinets and granite, because this is what I personally like AND it makes sense for our specific home.

Just do what you want to do and you won't regret it. You've put way more thought into this than all those people changing their granite barf countertops out for marble-lookalike ones.

I don't think so. I think people are now exposed to things they were not before.

If you just look at finished kitchens from the posters here. There are white kitchens, a lot of them, however each person took what they love about a white kitchen and added their personalities. So none of the white kitchens are copy cats or look alikes.

Those that kept stained cabinet kitchens did fun things with their countertops and/or back splashes.

You have folks that have a modern vibe, those that have a country vibe, those that look traditional and then those that blend different aspects really well to have a true transitional look.

I didn't know what all these styles were called, let alone looked like until HGTV and Garden Web/Houzz.

12 years ago or so, I did the Kitchen in my moms house. It is light maple shakers, SS appliances, high quality sheet vinyl in a flagstone pattern and a grey Corian counter with integrated sink. Goose neck faucet, simple pulls and knobs in brushed nickel. The walls are painted paprika and the back splash is a glass mosaic.

It's quite transitional, I had no idea what that meant until after doing it and hanging out here.

That kitchen is still attractive and doesn't look dated. It'll become a rental in the future and should still look fine in 5-10 years. I may change the wall color. :)

My new kitchen is no where near that look. I wanted this kitchen to be more old world, to be timeless and quiet, simple and clean.

It's a little farm house, but in a busy working, been around a while kitchen kinda way.

I really don't care what the trends are. I personally don't like white kitchens. As beautiful as they are it's just not me. I do not like Quartz counters. To me Quartz counters look fake. I do think people should just go with what they love and what makes them happy. If its on trend or not as long as they love it who cares. We are building a log cabin. Our choices are completely off trend. Cabinets will be either natural hickory or knotty beech. Counters will most likely be uba tuba. I know barf.

I think (1) it's what's "in" in Europe, and then (2) the trend moves to the East Coast and the West Coast, and finally the rest of the country, all with some time delay.

For example, front loading washing machines: They've been around in Europe for the last 50+ years but were pretty much non-existent in the US until a few years ago. Now they are what's required here in my area. Similarly, 20+ years ago, tiled backsplash down to the counter wasn't the norm, nor were ceiling high and frameless cabinets, but totally normal in Europe.

Same with European appliances, which BTW are, and have been, all pretty much integrated, white kitchens, and marble-like or less dramatic counters. Of course, it's still adapted for US tastes, i.e. bigger, thus huge fridges and ranges. Again, 20+ years, I wanted a marble look tile for my bathroom, totally normal in Europe, which, however, in the US was prohibitively expensive. Now, it's the standard bathroom.

Combine this with the importance of resale and much faster turnover of one's house here in the US, and you basically have to have a place that appeals to the largest potential buyer base.

Finally, I wished I didn't like all white kitchens, but I've always had a white kitchen, glass doors, white counters, and single bowl white porcelain sink.

I think the media and resale concerns have definitely suppressed individuality. I doubt that most people had any idea what other people's kitchens looked like outside their immediate geographical area and socioeconomic class, years ago, and they probably did not want to copy their friends or neighbors. Sure there is variation, but it is variation within a couple different models of "suitability". I could probably look at local real estate here and pull up various almost interchangeable kitchens and baths at various price points and very little individuality unless it was old, or way out of norm.

front loading washing machines: They've been around in Europe for the last 50+ years but were pretty much non-existent in the US until a few years ago.

Hmm, it seems to me that they were pretty common during the 1950s before they went out of style. I can remember Hazel or whoever reaching into the slant-front Bendix.

I'm not sure that the US exactly follows European trends. I think it usually works out more that manufacturers see an opportunity to save some money by adapting a Euro design idea and then are able to sell the public with the idea that if it's from Europe it must be better. The first generations of Euro-style concealed hinges come to mind. They were horrid junk (the ones in the US) but nobody wanted to be such a square as to point that out.

But overall I would have to agree with the main points in your post.

Of course, one problem is that even if you don't like the prevailing trend, as a consumer you are captive. I can well remember looking for years for a red teakettle and other kitchen knck-knacks during the era when it was decreed that only gray, colonial blue, and dusty rose were acceptable kitchen accent colors, so I think this predates the internet and HGTV in some ways.

Interesting question!

In terms of trends, one thing that's struck me is how quickly US kitchens have been bled of color.

When I began lurking at GW/ThatHomeSite 14+ years ago, renos tended to have fairly strong color *somewhere* -- generally the counters, maybe the backsplash, sometimes the floor.

The Something's Gotta Give kitchen -- within the One True Kitchen family -- generally had dark counters (soapstone or honed black granite) but even if the floor was a neutral the dark grey/black + white gave it a strong graphical look. And every so often someone had a fancy color-color stove....

Now the vintage-inspired kitchens have gone even further away from the color that was often in true vintage kitchens (think any of the following: lino floors; colored tile counters; colored tile backsplash or at least accent tile; vibrant paint on walls and/or cabinets; bold wallpaper).

And the contemporary kitchens have gone gray. ;)

We don't watch those shows (don't have cable), and don't generally buy into trends. Our kitchen is a combination of function and affordability. It's mostly white, as all of our kitchens have been. Plain 'ole Formica and surface mounted SS sinks are our preference (OK, if money was no object, we would have gone soapstone). I built my own cabinets, so they are simple, sturdy, and functional. No trendy lighting here.

That being said, there's no doubt that most people follow the big trends, both good and bad, and builders do try to sell it. The mason that did the stone work really wanted to use Tennessee flat stone for the base of our Craftsman columns (wrong!), and only wanted to go up 24" (wrong!). I had to talk him through the entire process to get what I wanted, with him saying, "That's not what's popular right now!" I'm sure I would have gone round and round with a KD, had I opted to use one.

It's funny, but I didn't realize white cabinets were considered trendy until came on here fo r layout help. I knew gray were from the cabinet catalogs but that's it. I stopped watching HGTV when I got tired of every single kitchen being done the same...espresso cabinets, granite counters, terrazzo or lookalike backsplash and floor. I haven't gone back and I can honestly say I haven't missed the sameness of everything they crank out.

I think softpunk has a good point. Most people don't have a strong sense of style, and many, if not most, probably decorate from big box stores. Two of my best friends have kitchens and home decor they love. One put in builder grade oak straight off the shelf from Home Depot, stained dark themselves, terrazzo backsplash, lookalike floor tile, brushed nickel pulls. They did it 3 years ago. She loves it. The other has the original custom cabinets in medium brown and green granite installed by the PO. They added terrazzo backsplash to "update." They did it about 4years ago.

Friend one has a strong sense of personal style but did a low budget remodel straight off the shelf st Home Depot. Friend 2 has no sense of style and is thinks granite is the great no matter what it looks like.

As far as buying a house with a bad kitchen goes, even though I've done it once, I'm not sure I'd do it again. Unless the house is really underpriced, we are just not going to have the money to do a full remodel. We have a modest home on a single income, and if I think about it, I'm still pretty blown away that we're doing ours now. We certainly couldn't have without the small inheritance we got.

Yes.

I'm considered "eclectic" now, where previously I would have been accused of no taste because my stuff 1) doesn't match, 2) is way far from standard, and 3) really doesn't match. But "eclectic" is now "unfitted" which makes me totally cool. According to all the CL people who come to buy stuff to make their own "rustic" homes. Go figure.

I like the cleanness of the cookie cutter kitchens, but I sure don't want one.

CEFreeman it's a pity I can't be your "CL people"..you're too far away judging by your user name..:)

I have a feeling I'd like to buy stuff from you too

PS my daughter also tells me all the time most people have no taste no style, and 95% of her friends' homes (or rather their parents') were all professionally decorated (we live in HCOLA area..Southern OC..so many rich people around), all looked the same, with big white sofas and just one funky pillow by Jonathan Adler that'd say something witty. She also tells me in the dorms everybody's got the same posters and they're all very cliche and why do I think people have style when people don't

Well I don't know..I have plenty of very talented friends, not all of them decorate or are interested, but they write, make movies, design clothes, are photographers, make furniture etc, sew, cook like nobody's business, do amazing crafts-clay, mosaics, embroidery, vitrage glass..some are actually well known people in their fields..I have a couple of friends that so masterfully throw things together, without any doubt or fear, that they inspired me endlessly, whether in what I wear or how I decorate. Small things I'd never think of

So maybe my opinion is skewed there I don't know..

People either have a sense of style, and they know what they like (and why) or they don't. It's always been thus, HGTV has nothing much to do with it.

Where one buys kitchen cabinets, flooring, counters and backsplash, also has almost nothing to do with how stylish and personal a kitchen eventually looks. It's a matter of how the different elements are put together, proportions, contrast, textures, color and lighting. Some kitchens one beautiful component next to another, but the sum of them, the space as a whole ends up looking disappointing nevertheless.

Pippabean, I agree with most of what you say. If you have your own style, the fads/trends fly by without interest. However, if you have a particular style that is out of style, it is hard to find things/appliances/cabinets/furniture that are of interest and fit with your dreamed-of decor. But, I guess, that makes for an opportunity to scrounge around flea markets, used furniture stores, recycle venues and spurs DIY to get what you want.

beachem- do you like/have time to read a little?

It will answer every musing you expressed in your post. The answers to your questions have very little to do with countertop choices or cabinet colors. And a lot to do with the industry offering them.

"Contagious: Why Things Catch On" and "Invisible Influence"by Jonah Berger

My company is well into the early adopter stage ( :

@RCKsinks thanks for the reading tips. I'll grab a copy and read them.

I try to post an interesting subject each week that would be fun or useful for people. It's been great reading what everyone's perspective is.

My husband is in marketing and I'm very aware of all the tricks to sell and manipulate consumer responses.

It's just that with the proliferation of social media, individuality seems to disappear. Uniqueness and individualism used to be admired but is now avoided.

Agreed ! That's why all the reading on my part. I have found there is definitely a mind set to many of my sink customers ( some of whom I have interacted with during ordering, working with their installers, etc.) They are the most self-assured people you could ever meet. ( : The "early adopters" the trend setters.

I was intrigued with the idea that a re-modeled/updated kitchen is crucial to resale, or at least brings in a higher $ value. Since we've been checking Redfin a lot recently (DD and family are pre-looking for a house), I thought I'd offer some of what is currently on the market here (which isn't much!). My conclusion is that in houses under $1M (maybe 60% of the market?) the kitchen is really, really going to need a re-do. And that necessity is not going to affect selling price one iota. These houses are in the 1600-2000 sf range. The buyers' mortgage + property tax will run $3-4+K/mo. With the exception of the 4th house down, they will all sell within 2 weeks of going on the market. The 4th house is in early negotiation after two months on the market and will likely go for $25-50K less than asking, but that's just a guess-the seller wants full price. Most houses go for at or above asking. Most buyers have little left for remodel.

This one at $669K is at least usable, updated sometime after the original 1958 kitchen:

$840K, new paint, probably the original 1968 kitchen:

$830K, new paint, new appliances, original 1968 cabinetry:

$749K, original 1960 kitchen. (I like this house, but it needs approx $100-150K to rehab, including tearing out a pool.)

If a buyer can go over $1M, other kitchens are possible. (Love the pendant.) This house is $1.3M, built in 2001, 3400 sf.

Thanks Suzanne for posting those. If it was me, I'm fine with all the kitchens other than changing out to a stronger vent hood and stronger stove. I can live with the rest.

They all look bland but functional. I'm in the car with heat exhaustion right now so I'm not analyzing the functionality too deeply.

I doubt that most people had any idea what other people's kitchens looked like outside their immediate geographical area and socioeconomic class, years ago, and they probably did not want to copy their friends or neighbors.

Sure they did. We had magazines that showed us the "latest" and "greatest" trends in kitchens and baths and home decorating. AD was supposedly the arbiter of good taste and dreams to attain to. Remember all those kitchen and bath magazines you'd go out and buy when you wanted to redo your kitchen or bath?

That's why everyone in the late 70's, early 80's put in those white or almond melamine kitchens with the wood strip. Remember those?

I don't think it's any different now than it was then except back then the choices for those on the lower end were more limited so the styles were more limited.

Nowadays with the internet, it's all around us if we want to look. Before you had to search for it, or rely on a KD, or your great aunt or those magazines.

But are we slaves to trends? Yes. Be honest with yourselves as you look through all the kitchens here on houzz. We see the same versions over and over.

The majority of the kitchens if they run transitional-traditional are white shaker cabinets, wood floors, gray, white or a soft version of blue backsplash and quartz countertops in a pseudo marble pattern. (Or if you're gutsy, it's a carrera or calacutta marble in a honed finish or a light quartzite). Every once in a while someone instead does a black honed counter or soapstone, but that's the exception. Yes people put their own touches by choosing backsplashes with different shaped tile, or different light fixtures over the island, or different pulls and knobs in different finishes, but please don't kid yourselves. They all are on trend.

In 10 years they will all look dated. Heck even Christopher Peacock is supposedly moving away from the all white kitchen, but then again, he's supposedly a trendsetter.

If you run towards a more contemporary look, it's slab panels in walnut usually and maybe white uppers with quartz countertops.

Now of course I'm generalizing, a lot. But think about it. How often do you see a truly original kitchen? One with colorful cabinets like 2little fishes, or using a colorful granite like Steve Shermans, or interesting cabinets like the ones that Pipdog posted? I think we all know the answer. :)

The best thing to do about trends is to ignore them. Complaining about trends is the flip side to following trends. Do what you want whether it is trending or not. My only exception is if one is really going to put a property on the market and wants to get as much as possible or sell it as quickly as possible in a buyers market. Otherwise, you are the one who has to live with it, no one else. As I mentioned in your previous thread (I see a theme here), it is the person/people who cook and open up their home who make a kitchen warm and inviting, not the design.

AD was supposedly the arbiter of good taste and dreams to attain to.

A 1965 subsription to Architectural Digest was $8 for 4 issues.

That's $62 now, or $15.50 an issue; in 1970 it was $17.25 for 6 issues or $18 an issue in today's dollars. Rolls-Royce was sometimes the only car advertiser in the entire issue. Although the houses were Much more modest than most of the houses they feature today, the target audience for the magazine was much the same demographic as the houses they featured. Not any more. The income of the target demographic has dropped, and the income of the people whose houses are featured has skyrocketed.

Sub-Zero/Wolf isn't selling more units because their old demographic has expanded, they are selling more units because more and more people who are outside the affluent group who used to buy SubZeros and commercial ranges have been convinced they deserve to spend $9000 for a fridge.

Remember all those kitchen and bath magazines you'd go out and buy when you wanted to redo your kitchen or bath?

Sure, but they were specialty publications and you had to go out and buy them, and most people probably only did so when they were redoing a kitchen or bath, which for most people was maybe a once in a lifetime thing. And I think you probably bought the sort of magazine that catered to your demographic, you weren't looking at $300,000 kitchen renovations when your budget is $50,000 like people do now.

As far as everybody putting in melamine and wood strip cabinets or "Spanish Mediterranean" cabinets in the 1970s or oak cabinets in the 1980s, sure they did. But it was also partly because that was what was offered. Small time kitchen contractors in the 1980s or 1990s were more like: Maple, arched door or square door. Oak, cathedral door or square door. Take your pick. Here is my rack with laminate, take your pick. I carry GE or Amana, take your pick. Here's the rack with my cabinet hardware, take your pick. I knew plenty of people who had identical kitchens, sure, because their houses were built by the same builder and he only gave them a few options. But the few people who I know that did custom kitchens didn't really want it to be like one of their other friends who did a custom kitchen.

Honestly though, I did not grow up in a city. You could not buy Architectural Digest at a local news agency or bookstore. I doubt you could buy it anywhere within two hours of where I lived. Same with higher end fashion magazines. Now, where I grew up I am sure you could probably find most fashion magazines and probably Elle Decor at our local Walmart,(although still probably not AD) and my local city grocery store in the city has Architectural Digest right next to the National Enquirer.

So, I still don't think it's the same. Now we are inundated by design media. You used to have to seek it out when you required it, or if it was a special interest of yours. (Which encompassed a lot less people than it does now, I think).

I am forever puzzling as to how this came about though:

"Sub-Zero/Wolf isn't selling more units because their old demographic has expanded, they are selling more units because more and more people who are outside the affluent group who used to buy SubZeros and commercial ranges have been convinced they deserve to spend $9000 for a fridge."

Marketing and advertising.

Yes - marketing and advertising which every decade gets more pervasive - and now there is HGTV and the Internet - always at one's fingertips.

Here is a funny, relatable article:

http://victoriaelizabethbarnes.com/a-manifesto-against-the-tyranny-of-luxury-kitchens/

In addition to all the insights above, one thing that's changed dramatically is people's "design literacy."

When Target hit the scene they did so with commercials that had a visual language that engaged a huge number of people -- not just people who lived/breathed design, but regular folks.

[That's not to say that magazines and movie trailers in earlier times didn't expose people to some amazing design. But compared to repetitive commercials....]

So you have Target and IKEA etc becoming part of the landscape, and over the decades many people have become more visually sophisticated. So many of us want the look -- and if we can't have it, we damn sure want "the look for less" instead of whatever the builder buffet du jour is.

GW was a funnel for trends (and sameness) back in the day, Houzz is more so -- but overall, it's kind of exciting times.

I certainly Have Thoughts about younger folks who "must" have move-in ready apartments and homes, but mostly that's because they seem to have the funds to avoid my many "character-building" experiences!

Actually, I planned a very very colorful kitchen:)

Until I realized that a) I can't afford 5K on a tiny backsplash( I wanted a certain pattern..yes, with flowers..)) b) I don't want the kitchen that's all aubergine, but fuchsia for uppers won't work since too few uppers and c) I already have ton of fuchsia because of the big bougainvillea looking straight into the kitchen's window..and actually my concern became how to frame the best the bougainvillea, and I think that was a good direction to take because I'm crazy about bougainvilleas. Frankly more than i am about kitchens.

BTW would do walnut in a heartbeat too..but the only thing I knew for sure-I wanted walnut floors..small kitchen, walnut on walnut, too much of a good thing

That dictated painted cabs

Wanted butcher block not Quartz-but our cabinet maker talked us out of it..

(and yes I course wanted walnut butcher block..what can I say I just love the wood. Reminds me of my childhood maybe?)

I do admire softer look of soapstone-but black counters are not exactly my thing..and not for this house

Don't like marble look Quartz..do like marble or limestone, but softer transitions, subtle veining. anyway, I'm a tile person..so started with the tile, tile had enough interest..went with smooth light Quartz to match the tile..:)

(now I need to constantly wipe the whole shebang because every crumble-you can spot it.)

my point-you work with what you've got

for example-for me, absolutely no to white cabs, not in our house.

houses boss you around, to a big degree

but that's cool..you feel you have a dialogue..:)

so will it be dated in 10 years? maybe I don't know. in any case. I'm kinda sure this kitchen will hold better than me..in terms of appearances..

I'd rather trade places with it lol

I don't know where this age discrimination is coming from. When my wife and I bought again 6 years ago we were not interested in renovating. Well, I was more than she if it was the right house. Otherwise we were quite happy Boomers who were not interested in the headache of less than move in ready. All the Gen Xers and the few Millennials I know who can afford to buy all want to make the house their own and have preferred fixer-uppers, especially at the lower price. I think someone just wants a demographic to dump on for some silly reason.

(ah..we didn't have any design magazines when I grew up..

we had all sorts of other magazines, and my family subscribed to a lot, and some were actually pretty cool..but not one on design or decor)

I knew I wanted a white kitchen and we were on a strict, low cost budget for our kitchen remodel.

I have stacks of kitchen magazines I had for at least 3 to 5 years in anticipation for it. I knew I wouldn't be spending what those kitchens had, but they gave me inspiration to attain it on a lower budget. I could have just looked online, but I guess I love magazines.

I may be the exception, though.

Joseph, age discrimination? I've read through everything. I don't see where you're getting that from.

"I certainly Have Thoughts about younger folks who "must" have move-in ready"-House vixen.

And there were digs at Millennials at a previous post by the OP. I feel like I'm reading "Back in my day we walked to school 5 miles up hill both ways in 10' of snow and we liked it! Get off my lawn".

Joe

Joseph --

Well, I'm mid-life so these day "younger" encompasses people up to about 50!

Anecedata based on reports from friend and family across the US and conversations with local realtors, sure.

But am I mis-remembering various data-filled reports re people (including first-time home buyers of all ages and renters) walking away when kitchens and baths aren't updated/trendy?

Well I don't know what the cause is but there is definitely a bland sameness to a lot of new and remodeled things. I was just looking at some magazine I got for a local "artisinal" parade of homes. I'm long past any interest in parade of homes events but I thumbed through it thinking it would include something interesting and unique. Oh no - lots of expensive white/griege blah sameness. I never thought of myself as having much in the way of style but maybe I do because I like my stuff to be different from everyone else's with a reasonable level of personalized individuality. That being the case I'm not bothered much by something deemed to be dated as long as it's in good condition and pleasing to my eye.

Many of us here have Millennial children and we love them very much:)

I went many years without watching HGTV, watched for a few months, and have gone back to not watching, though I plan to view some "Fixer Uppers" online when i get some time. For the time I did watch, Millennials on shows like House Hunters were usually negatively portrayed. Spouses / partners were often snappy with each other - he had to have his media room, she had to have a closet for a hundred shoes. From what little I have read of the show, that is partly done on purpose or create drama - after all, they have already picked out a house before filming even begins. They would often say how dated and awful things were in a perfectly fine home.

We do live in a marketing saturated world - not just Millennials, but the Boomers too, and everything in-between. Marketing works to get you to buy something - so it has to convince you what you have is not the best, you would be happier with different, and it often plays on people's desire to be "cool", "together" and "on trend". Now, Google even collects data based on what you are viewing to personalize the advertising thrown your way. I look up something to help a poster and before you know it, I've got ads showing up about those products on my computer.

Our Depression era grandparents had a little better sense of gratitude. I once asked my mom if there had been much fighting in a house with 5 kids and one bathroom. She replied that they felt lucky to have a bathroom:) Not to sound sappy (but it is Sunday morning) I try to have a sense of gratitude on cold nights that I have heat, and when I turn on a faucet and out comes warm water. That helps to counteract the onslaught of advertising that happens every time I open my computer or turn on the TV.

...and while it might not have been interpreted in this way due to my failure to "connect the dots" in my first statement --

I think the vast uptick in a design-centric culture that's happened over the past few decades has created consumers who are a lot less tolerant of what we, as individuals, deem ugly, outdated, not-my-taste etc.

Now, could one call that entitlement if the intolerance has to be fixed ASAP? Maybe, maybe not.

But aside from the fact that renos and purchasing gets money circulating in the economy, I think people being tuned into design is -- in general, again -- a good thing.

House Hunters and other reality shows of those sorts are heavily scripted now at least to the extent that the producers tell you how they want you to behave, and it's usually in a way to create drama. I know several people who've been on those sorts of shows and one, they already own the house they chose and two, they are supposed to find fault and express dissatisfaction and disagree with each other whether they feel that way or not. My niece was cut from a show about hair stylists for not throwing a tantrum and cursing out her stylist after getting a cut and color she really liked. And the producers were mad at her. So it's an unrealistic portrayal that makes people look like jerks.

On the other hand people see this behavior in TV so often that that's how they think they are supposed to behave...like it's sophisticated to be an a-----e.

are heavily scripted now

House Hunters has always been that way. The second season they were on the air they were advertising in our area for recently-bought houses that might be used as the unsuccessful candidates in a segment about a house the owners already owned.

Eh, who cares! I couldn't care less that my white kitchen is trendy or that I chose to add brass, large pendants and glass 2 x 6 subway tile when people in my area are still stuck on nickel hardware, mini pendants and mosaic backsplash (or shiplap).

People have more discretionary income than they once did. When my parents and when I was looking at houses, one took what one got and made the best of it. I knew some pretty wealthy people and I can only remember one friend from when we lived in LA (she lived way up the hill in Beverly Hills) who remodeled her kitchen, and a friend in St Louis who had the world's smallest kitchen, 3 children and entertained and cooked nearly every single weekend. People just didn't spend money on such thing! They MADE them work! Now, a 5 year old kitchen in Darien CT is considered a "total gut job".

I redid my kitchen of 32 years last year. Was it useable? Yes! Had I made it attractive? Yes? Could it be improved? Absolutely yes! And a new kitchen was on my bucket list, which at then age 72, seemed to have some "time relevance"! I have NO REGRETS! Moving my refrigerator made an enormous difference both in the function of the kitchen and in its appearance. When the main entrance into the kitchen feels "cramped" (because it IS cramped!", then that colors one's impression of the entire kitchen which was NOT cramped at all! Now, the kitchen appears quite spacious for an 11 x 15 ft kitchen! It has tons of counter space, good separation of work areas for multiple cooks, and the replacement of bottom cabinets with big drawers was worth doing even if everything else had worked perfectly.

But redoing my kitchen was far from a "necessity". It was a luxury to which I treated myself and I have no regrets. I think at my age, I "earned" it by living for so many years with multiple kitchens that were anything but ideal. But even in them, I cooked fabulous meals and I never was beside myself every single time I went into my kitchen. It's all a mindset today.

My two cents to the original post about marketing design to the masses is this: heaven help those Texans who finally come to the conclusion that shiplap is just wood paneling turned sideways. :)